Tapestry
by the Nutcrackers
Summary: JC A short fall story read it, it's cute!


**Disclaimer: None of this belongs to us, no infringement of copyright is intended.**

The sun was viciously hot for a fall day; the leaves had turned from their hues of greens to crimson reds, golden yellows and rich browns. In her mind the day was much too warm for the middle of November, and as Kathryn walked along the meandering path in the woods she could hear the fallen leaves crunch underfoot. On a whim she began stepping on each of the leaves both those in her way and just lying in the forest. Suddenly she felt like a child again and hardly resisted the urge to make a massive pile of leaves and dive right into them. It was refreshing for her to get away from it all now that Voyager had returned home. She had been, and still was, swamped with debriefing after debriefing, interview after interview, and all of it was getting to her. She had realized she needed a vacation after she had threatened to murder a young reporter if he didn't leave her office, and then proceeded to throw a perfectly good cup of coffee right in his face. Sighing she slowed her pace on the path and navigated her way around the leaves, tired of the crunching sounds. She found it ironic that after seven years of trying to get home to Earth, she couldn't wait to leave.

There were only three things left for her to do before she was off: find a nice place to organize this little escapade to, bicker with the Admiralty until they let her go, and find a way to bring as many of her mother's homebrewed coffee with her as she possibly could. Now, of those three, there was only one that she expected to develop into a real problem. After all, for the kind of rest she needed, it would certainly be a few weeks before she was back and even with all the modern techniques, they still had not found a way to preserve good coffee for more than a week before it tasted as if it had been replicated – a taste which she definitely had had her fill off for the next seventy years. Thinking about coffee made her suddenly anxious to return to her mother's house. She shook her head slightly when she realized what she'd just thought; even her childhood house was no longer home to her. At the moment, it was just a link in the chain of rigmarole that had accompanied their arrival in the Alpha Quadrant, and part of the fuss she wanted to escape for a few weeks. Over the moon to have her eldest daughter back safe and sound, her mother had been overly concerned and at times even protective of 'her Katie'. And, though her mother's doting had been very welcome after her unintended seven-year exile, it had now crossed over into being annoying and slightly suffocating. Even the excuse that she was simply acting as any mother would act had ceased to be useful. No, she really could not wait to pack her things and leave to Dorvan for a few weeks. With a surprised blink, Kathryn promptly halted in her tracks, crunching a wayward leaf in the process. Dorvan? Now where had that thought come from? In a quick flash of insight, she realized she had planned to take a trip to Dorvan from the moment Chakotay had. She quickened her pace as her mother's house came into view, determined to pack swiftly and get on her way to Chakotay.

A few hours later, she groaned as she threw another piece of clothing to the floor. She couldn't believe she was actually taking this trip with Chakotay. Well, not with him. He was already there, but she was going to join him. He had no idea she was coming, and as a matter of fact she really didn't want him to know. She wanted to surprise him, but now she was having second thoughts. What if Seven was there with him? That could turn into an awkward situation; one she wasn't in the mood to deal with. Throwing another pair of pants onto the floor she looked into her now emptied closet. She really had nothing to wear. It had been years since she had taken a vacation, and even longer since she had done anything with her wardrobe. Looking at the pile of clothes that lay before her, she spotted the pink and peach dress she had worn on New Earth, the day of the plasma storm. She lifted it into her arms and remembered the tender way Chakotay had comforted her after all her research had been destroyed. Sighing she threw a few random pieces of clothing into her suitcase and slipped into the peach dress. Kathryn decided she was leaving immediately; she had to get to Dorvan before Chakotay left.

It took her three days to get there by standard transport and by the time she arrived, she was dirty, hot and extremely annoyed. As Dorvan was a desert planet, a few of the freighters that made regular trips had the environmental controls on a temperature that was a good few degrees higher than she was used to and she just happened to be on one of those. What didn't make her stay – and her mood – any more pleasant was that the small and crowded cargo ship was extremely seedy and dusty when compared to Voyager – even during her war days when the plasma conduits were sparkling from the ceilings. And the worst thing was that her nerves made this trip seem even slower and longer than their seven-year odyssey through the Delta Quadrant. With a dark comment concerning First Officers who always force shore leave, but are conveniently missing when you actually **want** to take shore leave, Kathryn finally stepped onto the sandy roads of Dorvan. Immediately after setting foot on the planet and even before she could take a look around, loud shouts erupted from what seemed to be a marketplace. Instinctively, Kathryn dived behind her suitcase and fumbled for the phaser she had hidden somewhere in her luggage. Armed and ready to shoot, she carefully peaked her head out from behind the bag and came face to face with a large crowd of harmless looking people. Stunned and feeling more ridiculous by the second, she quickly put away her phaser and reappeared from behind her luggage to face the group of laughing children and adults.

"Kathryn, what a pleasant surprise, I didn't expect to find you here!" A voice she knew all too well interrupted her embarrassing moment.

"Chakotay…" she had to do a double take, she actually didn't recognize her first officer in civilian clothing. It was amazing what a pair of navy pants and a white button down shirt did for the man. Kathryn found herself falling for him, faster and harder than she ever had before.

"What are you doing on this planet, ma'am? Is the great Captain Kathryn Janeway actually taking shore leave?" he teased her as he picked up one of her suitcases.

"What makes you think I came here willingly?" she teased right back. It was so nice to be able to share some time with Chakotay as two normal people, not as Starfleet officers. It was so cliché in her eyes, meeting Chakotay for shore leave, and finding him incredibly handsome this day. She wondered if perhaps he too found her attractive. Sighing, and thinking about her grey hair, she followed Chakotay toward the nearest transport.

"Something wrong Kathryn?"

"No." she smiled genuinely at him. "I was just thinking that I could use a good cup of tea right now. Tea and hair dye."

"Hair dye? Tea?" His eyebrows shot up a few inches in genuine surprise.

"Yes, I'm trying to cut back on caffeine and don't you see my grey hair?" Laughing Chakotay and Kathryn stepped into the transport.

"Alright, who are you and what have you done with Kathryn Janeway…"

The rest of the trip to his home – and yes, it really was a **home**, she realized the moment she stepped in – they continued their easy banter, both delighted to be together again. It wasn't until they'd both sat down on one of his sofa's, she with the desired tea and he with a cup of coffee, much to her surprise and amusement, that he became serious.

"So Kathryn, what are you doing here?" She nearly panicked, afraid that meant that – despite his warm welcome – he didn't really like it that she was here.

"I'm sorry, I should have called you and tell you I was coming." She apologized rather nervously. "I just thought it'd be nice to surprise you. I'll leave if you don't want –" Her stumbled babble was cut short when he lifted up her chin with his right hand, forcing her eyes to leave their spot on the floor and meet his.

"I didn't mean to make it sound as if I'm not happy to see you, Kathryn." He said softly. "I just wondered what brought you here. What brought the great Captain Janeway to my humble abode?" He smiled at her, which she tentatively returned.

"I missed seeing my best friend every day and decided to come see him." She replied simply.

Chakotay remained silent, feeling there was something else to it, but she didn't continue, merely sipping on her tea with her eyes cast down uneasily.

"And…" He finally prompted, brushing away the lock of hair that had fallen to hide her face. She suddenly looked up at him and he was surprised to see tears swimming in her eyes, while they pleaded with him to remain calm.

"And to ask if he still loves me."

"What?" Chakotay nearly dropped his cup of coffee. Looking at Kathryn he could see her hands were shaking violently, he had never seen her quite so uptight and nervous before.

"Chakotay, please, answer me honestly. Do you still love me?" Her hands continued to shake and she tightened her grip on her teacup.

"Kathryn, that is a completely ridiculous question." Taking the teacup from her hands, he gently pulled her toward him in an embrace. For once, Kathryn did not protest, as she allowed him to hold her and for once she let herself enjoy his hug. Burying her head in his shoulder she felt a few hot tears slip out of her eyes. A small sob escaped her lips, and he looked at her with tenderness she had not seen in years. "Kathryn, I love you more than life itself, I always have." Relieved, Kathryn smiled and allowed Chakotay to kiss her. She couldn't stop shaking as their lips met for the first time, and if she didn't know better, she could swear the Earth was actually moving.

"Oh Chakotay," she muttered between their kisses "I love you so much, I'm sorry it took me this long to realize it, and finally, here in your home I realized it…" And in that instant, Chakotay fell o his knees and kissed her hand.

"Kathryn, you are my home, I know this is all a bit sudden…" he couldn't believe he actually felt nervous about what he was about to say. He had rehearsed this scene so many times in his head, but now, now it was all different and so much better. "Marry me?"

Six months later they were married. And now they both were more alive than they had ever been.

"Darling are you coming?" Chakotay's voice interrupted Kathryn's thoughts.

"Sure, be right there!"

With a smile, Kathryn threw on her vest and took Chakotay's offered arm. His dimples showed in his warm smile and she felt her stomach do its usual flutter. Together, they walked out of his house – their home – and into the autumn air of Dorvan. Soon, they were no more than two silhouettes, strolling hand in hand, heading towards the sunset…

_**Fine**_


End file.
